Illegitimate child shall use mother’s surname

Illegitimate child shall use mother’s surname "Please advise us on what to do regarding my illegitimate brother‘s situation. He was born in 1992 and the fact of his birth was registered in the Local Civil Registry that same year. In all of his transactions, he is using our mother’s middle name as his, since this was the information provided by our mother when she registered my brother’s birth. However, we found out lately that there is no entry of his middle name in his birth certificate. EstebanDear Esteban, According to the Family Code of the Philippines, an illegitimate child shall use the surname of his mother. But, if he was acknowledged by his father, he may use the surname of the latter (Article 176 of the Family Code of the Philippines as amended by Republic Act No. 9255).As to the middle name, which an illegitimate child shall use, the said law is silent. However, the Supreme Court pronounced that an illegitimate child has no middle name. This was enunciated in the case of Republic of the Philippines vs. Trinidad R.A. Capote (G.R. No. 157043, February 2, 2007, 514 SCRA 76), to wit: “Our laws on the use of surnames state that legitimate and legitimated children shall principally use the surname of the father. The Family Code gives legitimate children the right to bear the surnames of the father and the mother, while illegitimate children shall use the surname of their mother, unless their father recognizes their filiation, in which case they may bear the father’s surname.“Applying these laws, an illegitimate child whose filiation is not recognized by the father bears only a given name and his mother’s surname, and does not have a middle name. The name of the unrecognized illegitimate child therefore identifies him as such. It is only when the illegitimate child is legitimated by the subsequent marriage of his parents or acknowledged by the father in a public document or private handwritten instrument that he bears both his mother’s surname as his middle name and his father’s surname as his surname, reflecting his status as a legitimated child or an acknowledged child. ” Since your brother is illegitimate, he shall bear no middle name. But, if he was recognized by his father, then he may use his mother’s surname as his middle name and his father’s surname as his.Again, we find it necessary to mention that this opinion is solely based on the facts you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. The opinion may vary when the facts are changed or elaborated.We hope that we were able to enlighten you on the matter.Editor’s note: Dear PAO is a daily column of the Public Attorney’s Office. Questions for Chief Acosta may be sent to dearpao@manilatimes.net." - https://www.affordablecebu.com/